Tile-making process



Feb. 3, 1931. A D A, CABLE 1,791,234

TILE MAKING PROCESS Filed Oct 29 1928 DDE] l E fl DDD Q j, J*

DDD

Dal/5' A. Cable Patented Feb. 3, 1931 fff-1,191,234

* UNIT-ED'STATES P f nAvIs A. CABLE, or CANTON, eine, AssieironroUnirnnsauirns @unanimita corr- PANY, 'or mancuernas, 'WEST VIRGINiA, A;coRroRArroujorjnnLAu/'Ann TILE-MAKING `:enocnss f f Application filed Qctob'er 29, 1928. SerialNo. 315,609. f

The invention relates to making ceramic produc-ts, and more particularly to imikingxv tile, slabs, blocks, and the like, vlier luse as relractorics or for exterior vor interior walls and ioors of buildings and 4the like, which may be of the type sometimes known. as quarf ry tile, and the dimensions olf-each oi which may be in the ratio of substantially siXinches square by three quartersof any inch thick;

1o and this application is a continuation ofthe 2o faces of an ordinary unbevelled'squaretile' should all be at rightangleswith each other.'

common subject mfatterin my copending application filed December 29, 1927, SerialNo.

243,325 for the same invention.

In order to meet trade requirements, par-y ticularly when the tileare to be .used i'orV the interior finish of buildings, all the faces and edges of the tile mustl be true andA inthe desired angular relationship with eachother. That is 'to say, the Yintersecting edgesy and According to the. usual method` of manuiacturingfquarry, t1le,"wh1ch includes form- 1ng,'dry1ng, and. burning the tile, 1t has been theprac'tice to form thetile', from damp clay,

ing, drying, repressing, *andr burnii'ig; or

includer forming, drying, repressing, planing, repr-essing, and burning; and it'has been the practice to, form theclay' productsfrom damp clay, shale ora mixturefof"ceramic materials in such a manner that afterthe re# pressing and burning operations, and the shrinkage incidental thereto, the faces and y edges of the finished products may be sufiiciently true for the uses to which'they are to be put. 'y

' According to the usual method which includes a repressing of plastic. material the l that method in erals-reer to similar ldnying operation is carried out for a time only sufficient toA semidry the material, the mixture being in a plastic state after the drying operation has been complete; This vis necessaryv for the reason that thenextstep is arepressing step which includes reforming the plastic material,inpressure molds. AIt isimpossible to carryout the,repressing-step unless the material isvin aplasticstate, for if.`

the material has passed' beyond the plastic' state or limit, it will be hard and brittle and will be crushed or' brokengbythe repressing operation rather than-being reformed-or repressed.

Accordingly, vthe lobjects of the presentv inventionA involve an improved tile A making process, whereby quarrytileand'the.like mayy be made true and accurateffor anydesired use, and by whichv a. largeproportion ofthe tile vmade according K tothe improved process may be usedgthereby avoiding-,the waste hfretofore incurred in warped andL untrue neri Y ,These rand ancillary objectsv arel'attained by the use ofthe improved tilemakin'g process hereinafter set forth in detail, an'd which may be stated in general terms aslincludin' In i first, forming a block from .moist ceramic material, then drying the*blockbeyondY the plastic linnt' to eliminate substantially all ot the moisture so that,theblockfwill 'beyhardr 'and brittle, ,thereby-effecting substantially all 'of the dryingshrinkage ofi/the block, then truing the ,block preferably by Y the l use oi ay suitable grinding ory "abradingymachine,v and finally burning the `block asta final step in the making of a substantiallyptrue,and `ac*- curate block for' us'ej a tile'or the like.

One" ofthe tile, and an arrangement oty apparatus adapted for carryingout the iinproved process Afr )r making `the same: are illustrated in? they accompanying drawing forming part hereof,` in which '1 1' l .i f Figure l is an isometricview o-fone of the tilezandl n l. A u Fig. 2 a fragmentary,.diagrammaticplan View yillustrating the lapparatus for carry-y ing out the improved process. `Similar nupartsl throughout the several views.

As an example of one type of product adapted to be made by the improved proc.- ess, the quarry tile 10 for use more particularly for the exterior or interior finish of buildings, may each have finished dimensions of substantially six inches square by three-quarters of an inch thick.

The tile l are made by the improved method hereof, by forming blocks l0 of moist clay, shale,y or a mixture of any de-` sired ceramic materials, in a forming machine indicated diagrammatically at 1l, and Which may be of any Well known construction, and may include for example means for forcing a column of clay outwardly from a nozzle and for severing the blocks l0 from the column by means of Wire cutters or the like.

The blocks l0 may then be piled upon a car l2 and transported thereon through a drier 13, in which substantially all of the total free moisture in the blocks is removed, rendering the blocks brittle, thereby efecting substantially all of the drying shrinkage usually incurred in the manufacture of ceramic materials.

The dried brittle blocks are then Wheeled on their car l2 to a truing machine indicated diagrammatically at 11i, which may be of any desired type, and more par-- ticularly may be of a type in which the blocks are subjected to grinding` or abrading in order that they may be eflectually trued Without breaking, crackingor otherwise destroying the dried brittle block. rl`he truing machine 14 is adapted to accurately trim the faces of the dried brittle block l0 and to deliver the dried and tru-ed block 10 Which may be transported as f r e);- ample by a belt conveyor indicated diagrammatically at 15 to a periodic kiln 16 for burning, or Which may be transported on another car l2 to a continuous kiln 17 for burning.

A very large proportion of the resulting tile l0 made by this method of manufacture, have edges and faces which are true, rate and in the desired angular relationship with each other, and are arcori'lingly'adapted for any desired use.

The ceramic material issuing from the forming machine Yl1 contains a. large proportion of moisture Which is in tivo forms, mechanically combined moisture and chemically combined moisture. ln the drying operation the mechanically combined moisture Will be driveiroif so that the blocks l0 contain a very loW percentage of mechanically combined moisture and are in a non-plastic brittleV state. The chemically combined moisture and the remaining vmechanically combined moisture are driven ofi' during the burning operation. l

Ceramic material which has been dried but which still contains sufficient moisture to `plastic limit is know-n retain plasticity is known in the industry as semi-dried material and may be rerdily and easily molded or repressed. 'When the moisture content of the ceramic material reduced below the plastic limit it brittle, thus being in a state in which it cannot be molded or repressed Without breaking. The material Which has been dried beyond the as partially dried material for it still contains small proportion of moisture, but, being bri 'tle it may only be worked on as y grinding or abrading, or

lf the material which has ieen dried has practically no mechanically combined moisture then that material is known in the industry as bone dry material. lhus bone dry material and partially dry material are inaterials beyoncL the plastic limit and are brit tle and cannot'under any conditions be subjected to the step known inthe ceramic industry repressing.

l claim:

l. The method of making tile and the like which includes forming a block of moist material, drying the block to beyond the plastic limit, truing the block, and then burning the block.

2. 'l` he method of making tile and the like which includes drying a moist block to beyond the plastic limit, truing the block, and then burning the block.

3. The method of making tile andl the like which includes truing a block dried beyond the plastic limit, and then burning the block.

Ll. rlhe method of making tile and the like which includes forming a block of moist materi al, drying the block to beyond the plastic limit, grinding the block edges and faces to true the same, and then burning the block. 5. rlfhe method of making tile and the like whi ch includes forming a block of moist material, drying the block until brittle, trning the block, and then burning the block.

6. The method of making tile and the like which includes drying a moist block until brittle, truing the block, and then burning` the block.

7. rllie method of making tile and the like which includes truing a dried brittle block, and then burning the block.

8. The method of making tile and the like Which includes forming a block of moist material, partially drying the block, truing the block, and then burning the block.

$1). The method of making tile and the like which includes partially drying a moist block, truing the block and then burning the block. y

l0. The method of making tile and the like Which includes truing a partially dried block, and then burning the block.

l1. The method of making tile and the like Which includes forming a block of moist material, bone drying the block, truing the block,

and then burning the block.

i2. The method of making n1@ and the like which includes bone drying t moist block, truing the block and then burning the block. 13. The method of making tile and the like which includes truing a bone Vdried blocln',

and then burning the block. A

. 14. The method of making tile and the like Which includesr drying a. moist block vbeyond the plastic limit, grinding Vthe block edges and 'faces to effect the proper'angular relawhich includes drying a moist unbevelled block until brittle, truing the block by grinding the intersecting faces and edges, and

then burning the block.

17. The method of making tile andthe like Which includes'partially drying :in unbeveiled moist block, grinding the edges and Y y faces of the block so as to true the same and produce the proper angular relationship' be-y tween the planes of the intersecting edges and faces,` and then burning the block.

In testimony that I cla-im the above, I have" p my name.

DAVIS A. CABLE.

hereunto subscribed 16. The method oi makingtile and the like A 

